Check out The Guardian's Banned Books Quiz: "According to the ALA, what was the book most frequently requested for removal from their shelves in 2007 (it also topped the list of “challenged” titles in 2006)?" Also, is rape an appropriate topic for YAs. "Judy Blume and fellow authors and readers have rallied behind Laurie Halse Anderson's acclaimed young adult novel about the rape of a teenager, Speak, following a call to ban it from schools in Missouri," say a article by Alison Flood in The Guardian. READ IT NOW.

Need a good Copyrighter? Even those at the top are in need. See Jonathan Franzen's book Freedom suffers UK recall: "So it is particularly unfortunate that, thanks to an apparent mistake by his typesetters, the version published in Britain has been found to be littered with errors."

Host a book festival and then "disinvite" an author. Think again! The Guardian reports, "A literary festival for teenagers has been cancelled in Texas after a group of authors withdrew in protest at the organisers' decision to "disinvite" controversial young adult writer Ellen Hopkins." READ IT NOW.

Granta named "best young Spanish-language novelists." SeeGranta names 'best young Spanish-language novelists' : "The future Ian McEwans and Salman Rushdies of the Spanish-language literary world have been named by Granta magazine in a list of the best young Spanish-language authors writing today."

Chicano(a) Writers

"A new book focuses on how the ethnicity of those incarcerated at the Whittier State School, a reformatory now known as the Fred C. Nelles Youth Correctional Facility," says the Whitter Daily News onMiroslava Chavez-Garcia news book States of Delinquency: Youth Race, and Science at Whittier State School, 1890s to 1940s. READ THE ENTIRE STORY.

Check out Yvette Benavides' book review of the new Alurista book Tunaluna (Aztlan Libre Press): "Alurista always has been known for this experimentation with languages and dialects. But he also has been criticized for this practice. Some critics find the language alienating to the very people he is writing about, or for..." READ THE ENTIRE REVIEW.

I caught three good documentaries on PBS. One was "As Long as I Remember: American Veteranos." Chicano writer Michael Rodriguez (Humidity Moon - Pecan Grove Press) and actor/poet Eduardo Garza are featured. Also seen in the doc are cameos of Norma Cantu, and of interest to El Paso, Diana Montejano. I was surprised and sad-happy at the same time to see a short clip of Trinidad Sanchez, Jr.

Above, Collapsed walkway at the Hyatt Regency in Kansas City

Independent Lens ran "Companeras," a documentary about Mariachi Reyna de Los Angeles. The documentary was very good, although it erroneously calls Mariachi Reyna the United States' first all-female mariachi.

A curious note, Emmanuel Martinez, the artist commissioned to do the painting of Lalo and Lola Delgado did a sculpture memorializing Mariachi Estrella. The sculpture is in Topeka.

Writer Ruben Martinez hosts a documentary called "When World Collide" about the first 100 years of the meztizaje. This one was very good also.

Ben Saenz meditates on the word "illegal": "The way we employ language says a great deal about our national character. Illegal is an adjective. It is not a noun. The use of the term in place of a human being is uncivilized, ungenerous, and mean spirited. I’ve always believed that when we call other people names, we begin to lose our dignity." READ NOW.

Who We Are

The Pluma Fronteriza newsletter was founded in 1999 to showcases Chicano(a) and Mexicano(a) writers from the El Paso-Las Cruces-Cd. Juarez region, the largest geographic niche in Chicano Literature.

Libros, Libros

PF later gave birth to Libros, Libros, the most up-to-date list of what is currently being published in Raza literature, inside and outside of El Paso, fiction and non-fiction. Libros, Libros not only lists new books, but gives you small descriptions, recent prize winners, and weblinks.

Pluma Fronteriza Blog

Although our blog is still dedicated to updating you on El Paso's writers, we found this would not give us enough juice for daily blog. So our blog is dedicated to updating you on what's new in Chicano Literature. We throw in bit about Latino writers occasionally. Although most of our focus is on Chicano(a) letters, we welcome news by Latino(a) writers as well. We published reviews, pensamientos, ramblings, interviews, chisme, chistes, and a lot more. We give you lists of NEW BOOKS every month, new books by both Chicanos and Latinos, or on Chicano, Latino, or Latin American topics.

Want to contribute

We accept book reviews, articles, or any of the above. Just contact us. We are currently seeking reviews to Chicano(a) titles published in 1980, 1990, and 2000. Reviews of new books are always accepted and either Chicano(a) or Latino(a) titles.